As optical sensors for target acquisition and tracking improve there is a need for systems and procedures for testing the sensors to ensure operability and reliability in the selected environment. The optical clutter created by excitation of the atmosphere by a nuclear event is one of the most stressful environments conceivable for successful function of such sensors. Therefore test equipment and systems which project realistic representations of such scenes are essential to test the efficient functionability of such sensors, because no real-experience tests can exist. Accurate scene simulators must be used to explore the complete range of operability and performance of such sensors.
A problem with generating such scenes is that a realistic scene must have spatial resolutions according to the clutter model defined by government specifications. A structure on the required resolution scale of the defined clutter model without interference by source display noise is difficult to attain with current display technology. Background suppression techniques which filter out much of the large scale, low spatial frequency structure while emphasizing the fine structure only aggravate the problem. Obtaining good performance in a nuclear environment makes background supression mandatory and is the main reason for producing simulated optical clutter scene displays.
Current sources for producing displays do not have the required precision to create the necessary pixel-to-pixel radiance variations. A simplified optical processor that could produce a scene with the desired optical characteristics from a source scene having less than the required precision would be advantageous.
It is therefore one object of the present invention to provide a simple optical processor for producing a scene with the desired optical clutter from less than a precision source scene.
Yet another object of the present invention is to produce an optical clutter scene simulating the atmospheric excitation of a nuclear event.
Still another object is to provide a realistic presentation of optical clutter for testing the efficiency and operability of sensors in an atmospheric disturbance.
Another object of the present invention is to produce a optical scene more closely simulating the clutter of a nuclear event than can a direct display, at least as defined by specifications.
Still another object of the present invention is to produce an optical scene providing an accurate, realistic simulation of clutter in the atmosphere from a nuclear event while suppressing the imperfections of the source display.